


Seduction

by still_lycoris



Category: Blake's 7
Genre: Angst, F/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-28
Updated: 2013-12-28
Packaged: 2018-01-06 12:36:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1106894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/still_lycoris/pseuds/still_lycoris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anna makes plans for Avon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Seduction

Anna hadn’t meant to seduce Avon.

She didn’t actually have anything against seducing men or women that she had been assigned. It was generally an easy way through defences, if they were the sort of person who would fall for it. But Avon clearly wasn’t the type. He was closed off from people, aloof, cold. Seducing him would likely make him trust her less, not more. He needed to be coaxed into friendship, coaxed even more into the faintest sort of trust. He was clearly uncertain of her and Del and the others, clearly keeping secrets from all of them. Del didn’t like it but Anna found it rather reassuring. If he had trusted too early, it might have been a bad sign. They didn’t send her in for anything but the best after all. And Avon was quite clever enough to work out that he was being betrayed if he put his mind to it. He was prepared for most types of spy.

But nobody was ever prepared for _her_.

She worked on him very carefully. Avon required cultivation. What he wanted in the people around him was intelligence and wit and he seemed pleased when she provided both. Little by little, she insinuated herself to his side, made herself useful, laughed, even teased. Avon liked people who would stand up to him. When he was rude to her, she was rude back or simply ignored him. She proved over and over that she was useful, that she knew what she was doing and that she was worthy of attention and trust.

He began to respond to her. Slow, sure, like the inevitability of a flower opening to the sun. Anna continued to coax, careful as she’d ever been. If she got this wrong ... the consequences would be unthinkable. But she had never failed before and she wouldn’t fail now, not even when her opponent was Kerr Avon.

Perhaps she should have kept aloof. Not taken it further. But oh, she could see him beginning to watch her, see the fascination that he tried to hide. And he _was_ beautiful and she knew that he’d be wonderful. And she knew too that he’d give her everything if he loved her. She could see it in him, better than he could see himself. 

So she celebrated with him. She laughed with him. And when he was giddy and wild with the success of his plans, she kissed him and he kissed her back.

He wasn’t bad in bed. Much better than she would have expected in fact. He clearly wanted to please her, make her happy, which was more than most of her partners ever had. He held her sleepily afterwards and stroked her hair and Anna knew that she had him.

It was strange but she almost felt guilty about it. She’d never felt guilty about any of her marks before. There was a reason she was Bartholomew, a reason she was the best. And Avon was hardly a good person. He was gleeful at the chaos he would leave in his wake, laughed with her about the money and what they could do with it. And there were other things too, things, he whispered to her because he trusted her, the things that had happened to him, the things he had done, the things he wanted to do. No, Avon was not a good man, was certainly a threat to the Federation. Any government would see it as their duty to have him neutralised.

And yet … she felt sorry for him. She even _liked_ him. He was so clever, so quick and when he wanted to be, he could even be charming. She had seem him display kindness in strange, arbitrary ways and then furiously deny it or ignore it when she attempted to bring it up. He had whispered his shames to her too, the things he regretted, that he would love to change if he could. And it was so clear that not only did he want her, he respected her. Most of her marks didn’t respect her. She wasn’t used to that.

“Do you love me?” she asked one night. A risky question and yet suddenly, she had to know the answer. They were close to the end now. The Federation had almost everything they needed to make their arrests. Soon, unless some miracle intervened, Avon would be on a prison ship, travelling far away from Earth to somewhere far, far worse.

His hands stilled on the computer he was working on. For a moment, he didn’t move. Then slowly, he began work again, more cold and precise than ever.

“I don’t think I understand love.” His voice was very quiet. “I’ve never … believed it worthy of attention. I try not to think about such things much, it is not … I suppose it isn’t my nature. I just know that you … you feel as though you _are_ me. I would do anything for you.”

He didn’t look at her as he spoke. His voice didn’t change its tone. But she knew that he meant every word.

She moved over, kissed the back of his neck softly. There was tension there, as though he were afraid of what she might say. And of course, he ought to be, but not for the reasons that he feared.

“I love you too,” she said and felt him relax. He believed her. He would believe everything she told him, now.

Perhaps he would never have to know she was the one who betrayed him. Perhaps they would keep that secret. Her identity was secret, after all. 

He never needed to learn the truth.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for livejournal's 12dayschristmas challenge.


End file.
